Marley’s Bat Mitzvah Weekend at Perlman Camp

July 7th – 8th, 2017

“Once and awhile you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right.”

Scarlet Begonias, Grateful Dead

Becoming a Bat Mitzvah in the middle of summer in the middle of sleepaway camp in the middle of a town in Pennsylvania…. Right near the border line, is of course just right for me.

Perlman Camp is such a special place to me and there’s nowhere else I’d rather spend this day than at a camp that I call mine, surrounded by my family and friends. Becoming a Bat Mitzvah is something I’ve given a lot of thought to, as well as what it really means to me. Camp has connected me to my Judaism. From Friday night services, to Israeli Dancing, to Song session and Shabbat Families, I’ve grown to really enjoy a part of me that is my Jewish self and culture through the summers I have spent at Perlman.

It took a lot to come to a conclusion as to how I wanted to celebrate my Bat Mitzvah. In the end, it made the most sense to me to do it in a place I think of as a second home, with my favorite people, in a place where I learn about Judaism on top of living it. Camp is camp, and no matter where I am or what is happening I always have camp. As Rachel said at the bonfire on the last night of Summer 2016, as we all cried sad to leave, no one at home is going to understand why you refuse to cut off all those string bracelets.

For my Bat Mitzvah, I will be leading Friday night services by the lake with the help of the Junior 8 boys, and on Saturday I will be leading morning services and reading from the Torah with the help of my bunk- the Junior 8 girls. I can’t wait to party with all my friends and family in the evening in Sobel Hall.

For my mitzvah project, I am raising money for the B’nai B’rith Perlman Camp Scholarship fund so more kids can have the opportunity to be a part of a family as special as mine at camp. To raise money, I am hosting a ‘Backyard Jam’ benefit and inviting a bunch of my friends and family to come play music with me. My love of music is something in my life that I prioritize over many, many things. I’ve been playing music for as long as I can remember, and it plays a primary role in nearly everything I do. Of course not everyone will be able make it to this event to donate, especially those who live far away, but even if you can’t make it, you can still contribute to the fund online in celebration of my Bat Mitzvah.

I’m so excited to share my Bat Mitzvah with so many people I love and care about!

You can support my Mitzvah Project at bit.ly/PerlmanMarley.